EnglishGreekDeutschFrenchItalianRussian
Crete TOURnet: Home Crete Guide Areas of Interest Heraklion Profitis Ilias (Kanli Kastelli)

Profitis Ilias (Kanli Kastelli)

Car Rental in Profitis Ilias (Kanli Kastelli)

Go Rent a Car, Kosmos Rent a Car
The twin peaks of Kanli Kastelli
The twin peaks of Kanli Kastelli
The village of Profitis Ilias, 20km south of Iraklion, has a hill above it with two peaks (Roka) which was the Acropolis of ancient Lycastos. Nikiforos Fokas built the Byzantine castle of Temenos in the same location in 961 when he freed the island from the Saracens. His objective was to bring the city of Hantaka (Iraklion) into the castle of Temenos. However, this did not materialize and the city remained were it was. In the thirteenth century the castle of Temenos was occupied by the Genoese Pescatore, and later by the Venetians. The name Kanli Kastelli in Turkish means blood-painted castle, and took its name from a massacre of Turks by the Venetians and Greeks that took place here in 1647.

Photos of Profitis Ilias (Kanli Kastelli):



The twin peaks of Kanli Kastelli
The twin peaks of Kanli Kastelli